Monday, January 30, 2012

Me and My Dog.

Hubster and I had words.
Every wife reading this knows exactly what this means. We have passed the
passionate shouting to be heard stage. We are together long enough now to
know that just leaves us with sore throats and exhaustion. It was a
difference of opinion, a difference in parenting, a difference in how to
get the best out of people.
I was frustrated and angry.
Boy child was upset.
Hubster had decided for all of us something which in itself is quite simple
and unoffensive.
However there was another person outside the family involved.
Someone who is not quite and sage.
Someone who is reactionary and difficult.
And Strong.
Hubster never sees this person.
And never has to deal with the tantrums (OK not quite tantrums)
Only I and my son have to deal with this strong person.
So
We will be the ones doing damage limitation.
We will be the ones smoothing ruffled feathers.
And I was annoyed.
So I took the dog for a good long walk.
It cooled me down no end.
He enjoyed the exercise too.
But he was bold and willful. Insisting on sniffing every tell tale sign
left by some other mutt.
Is it something in the air?
Or is the moon out of line with the earth or something?
All the males in my life giving me grief.
But there is a silver lining.
For the first time ever someone - a stranger - thanked me for not letting
my big awkward over friendly dog lick him and paw him as he passed us.
I have this dog four years now.
Its the first thank you.
I was thrilled.
My stranger looked like a murderer so it took some of the gleam off of it.
He was tall and thin with very hollow cheeks and a grey hoodie with the
hood up, his hands tucked into his jeans pockets and his white runners
gleamed against the grimy pavement.
Looks can be deceiving can't they?

Tuesday, January 24, 2012

And the Oscar goes to. . . .

BJ Kerry for best screen play.
Or best adaptation of a Novel to a screenplay.
Or any thing really.
Wouldn't it be the maddest thing ever to be in Hollywood today for the
glitz and glamour!
To be honest I probably wouldn't go.
I'd just film a message and have a GREAT party at home surrounded by my
(close) friends and (friendly) family.
I'm too shy to walk anywhere there are so many people with cameras and as
for wearing fancy frocks that you can't pee in?
Well thats a step too far.
Fashion is meant to make you pretty not cry.
I'm hoping Michael Fassbender gets something because he's one of our own.
Meryl Streep for being so fantastic everytime.
George Clooney just because . . . .
Well what do you think?

Friday, January 20, 2012

Death in many forms

I haven't been blogging of late due to a total lack of ideas.
And now that the weather is a bit Springy all I want to do is gardening.

I was pondering Chuck Wendigs Challenge re: describe your death but the
superstitious in me did not want to play Russian Roulette with that one.
Imagining it might just make it come true!

But it did get me thinking on writing about death, killing off characters.
How do people die normally.
What is believable, acceptable, plausible ?

Monday, January 9, 2012

Womens Christmas.

Nollaig na mBan!
We celebrated women's Christmas on Friday.
Its also called Little Christmas or the Feast of the Epiphany.
Its the 6th of January.
2012 will always remain special for me because it was the first time I had
a group of great women to go on the tear with!
(translation on the tear means out of the house having a good time eating
and drinking and being merry)
(but because we were all driving ourselves home no one was drinking)
(but being sober didn't stop a sing song erupting in my local pub)
It was great!
And I am still feeling buoyed up because of it.

And I survived Christmas.
I don't mean to denigrate people with real troubles and stresses to
survive.
However
Money is tight, tighter than its ever been but we had a feast on the big
day, bought and got presents and managed to do everything we wanted to do.
The kids were content with their gifts.
It means a lot to be able to achieve all that.
So the relief is palpable.

Also there is a real Spring feel about the place.
The days are getting longer, its a wonderful time of the year.
Better than Christmas in my opinion,
(no pressure)

On the writing front:
I've had a bit of a wake up call.
If I don't assign time to it every week and treat it like a real job its
going to be a haphazard jumble of ideas that never goes anywhere.
Other bloggers talk about word count and reaching targets each week.
Some people ask for time to dream and plan plots and story lines.
So what do I need.
1) time to plot
2) time to write
3) time to edit
Lets say I spend 3 hours a day doing all this and I do this 4 days a week
thats 12 hours.
Its not nearly enough is it?
If I could make that 20 hours I think then something serious would develop.

OK. Some Calculations.
How do I up my hours?
there are 24 hours in any day
minus 8 hours for sleep
that leaves 16 hours.
Of thoses 16 I spend 8 hours working (paid work that is) and commuting
that leave me with 8 hours
Minus 1 hour for walking the dog (I love this so it has to stay!)
minus about 2 hours for cooking and eating
so I should have 5 hours a day Mon to Friday for writing shouldn't I?
Shouldn't I?

Ah I forgot
-washing clothes,
-washing myself,
-badgering about home work,
-helping with home work,
-turning off TV and arguing with boy child and girl child about TV,
-meeting friends
-visiting relatives.
-trips to the cinema

All that has to stop.
Who says you cant wear 3 day old socks?
And I wear my hair like this cause lank and greasy is the new hmmmmm shiny
and glossy (?)
And washing it just takes so much time.


Wednesday, January 4, 2012

Happy New Year!

Or is it.
That phrase has been getting on my nerves for the last 4 days.
And. . . I know why.
Last year was one constant struggle on a lot of fronts and I really don't want to go through it all again. Unfortunately this is what 'Happy New Year' has come to represent in my brain.
Happy More of the Same.

With the best will in the world I am not in a position to improve/change things for myself or my family. Each year has melded into the last in terms of achievements and accomplishment. They don't make for inspiring reading.
I worry I am turning into some old farty bag who just goes around snapping at everyone in a state of constant disappointment.
Who has stopped showering and changing her underwear -because who gives a damn.
And whose own family stops having anything to do with her because she's just not worth the bother.
Sigh
Dramatic Sigh.
All this anticipation of the newness of the new year is just bugging me.
I mean if we didn't have calendars and newscasters to tell us it was new years on Jan 1st what day would we pick?
Today?
The first sunny day in February?
The first dry day (because it rains SO MUCH here)
The day we some see something in nature (the birds return, the leaves spring out of their buds, baby chicks,)
Ok so we settled on January 1st some time in the past and now we are stuck with it.
Today I noticed the first glimmer of light (literally) because the days are getting longer. And I need that bit of Spring in the air to revive me.


And so to the writing
This quote from Calvin Coolidge has often made me sit back on the saddle so to speak.
(and the one about eating an elephant. Don't know it? How do you eat an elephant? One piece at a time!)

Nothing in the world can take the place of Persistence.
Talent will not; nothing is more common than unsuccessful men with talent.
Genius will not; unrewarded genius is almost a proverb.
Education will not; the world is full of educated derelicts.
Persistence and determination alone are omnipotent
.

Calvin Coolidge (1872 - 1933)
30th president of US


Seriously though when would you pick your new year?